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February

HAPPY TALK, KEEP TALKIN’ HAPPY TALK!” …AT YALE Otherwise known as Psyc 157, “Psychology and the Good Life” You probably read the piece about “positive psychology” in the NY Times a few weeks ago. The course, taught by Laurie Santos, 42, a psychology professor and the head of one of Yale’s residential colleges, decided to… read more

“LOVE IS REFLECTED IN LOVE” Those are the first words I learned in Sunday School about a million years ago. I never forgot them. And these last few days they’ve acted as a kind of antidote for the horrific acts of hatred committed by a lone gunman inside the high school he’d… read more

“GET A COACH!” I listened to a “Ted Talk” this weekend that was sent to me by my very good friend, Dede Bartlett, that knocked me out. It was given by Atul Gawande, an American surgeon, writer, and public health researcher who practices general and endocrine surgery at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts. … read more

HOW TO BE FORGETTABLE… I know, I know, you’re wondering if that’s a typo right? As a communications coach, I’ve written and spoken frequently about the “Seven Steps to Being Unforgettable.” But that was before I heard President Trump give his State of the Union Address last Tuesday night. Seriously, if there had been a “groaning… read more

That was Bogey’s last line in “The Maltese Falcon,” and his answer to someone’s question about the mysteriously wrapped package that people were willing to give their lives for, after which the unforgettable epic 1941 film starring Humphrey Bogart, was named. Yes, there are those ‘things” that have meaning far beyond their obvious value that people are willing to give up everything for. And… read more

There’s a thoroughly charming children’s book by Arnold Lobel that I read to Kate and Abigail when they were little, called Grasshopper on the Road. It’s about a grasshopper who decided one morning to go on a journey. “I will find a road,” he said, “I will follow that road wherever it goes.” On his journey, Grasshopper… read more

I’ve been writing a lot lately about change, American values, optimism and big hearts – in spite of – or maybe because of the current political climate and executive orders of the recent weeks – which seem to be speaking another language; a language unfamiliar and strident to the American ear… But recently, I’ve read… read more

We are all, no matter our profession, position or personal situation in life, more and more frequently faced with an uphill battle in our effort to make a “sale” - whether we’re pitching a new product, a new service, a new program – or ourselves for the next “big thing.” Budgets are beyond tight, “management” in most companies or… read more

Here’s what I’ve learned over the years from my own public speaking and from helping others to present themselves powerfully and even unforgettably:The words we say are critical but just as important is the sound we make when we say them. In fact, if the sound is “off” your audience might not even hear the words… This past week,… read more

I’m worried about Boston. I mean, how much can one city take? Of course, the answer is: A Lot. If you’re Boston. Like four blizzards and seven feet of precipitation in three weeks, which as E.J. Graff wrote in Friday’s op-ed section of the N.Y.Times, “Boston’s Winter From Hell” “…crushed roofs, burst gutters, destroyed roads and… read more